Decision makers

Raise social assistance rates in BC

$610/month. That’s how much someone on social assistance is expected to live on in BC. BC has the highest poverty rate in all of Canada. Welfare rates have not been raised in since 2007. Meanwhile, the BC government has given massive tax cuts to the province's wealthiest people and most-profitable corporations, which has slashed government revenue dramatically.

Low welfare rates are a poverty trap. A budget of $610/month leaves $21/week for food and virtually nothing for what people need to find jobs and get out of poverty: hygiene, clothing, and transport. Poverty costs BC over $8 billion a year.It’s time for the government of BC to raise welfare rates.

We're a group of people and organizations who have joined together under the banner of the "Raise the Rates" coalition. We need to tell the government that the people across BC stand behind us. We want the BC government to ACT NOW and increase income assistance to the Market Basket Measure.

The Market Basket Measure (MBM) is a measure of how much disposable income people need to meet basic needs. The MBM for Vancouver is $1569 and the MBC for rural BC is $1517. Low welfare rates cost us more – in human lives and money – than raising social assistance to a liveable amount.